Picked Up
by hollie-x
Summary: My version of the aftermath of the Ste/JP fight. Brendan picks him up from the head-teachers office and has a bit of making up to do...


**My little own spin on the JP/Ste fight scene we've seen pictures of :)**

**This is all set after the fight though :)**

**Enjoy xx**

**[I know we know in the soap Ste knew Brendan was going to Dublin, but go along with it] :D x**

* * *

The head-teachers office. Yep, I've been in here enough to last me a lifetime. I was always the problem child at school, who could blame me for lashing out with my fists though? It's all I knew as a kid. Drink, drugs and violence. I grew up around it all. You'd think I would have grown out of that by now though. I'm twenty bloody three and I'm sat here in a prinicipal's office for fighting. With a teacher of all people. A teacher I've never, well, seen eye to eye with.

Looking around this room fills me with bad memories. It's a different office obviously, not even the same school but it just brings back the thoughts of somebody I really hate having to pick me up and drag me home. And punish me, the only way they knew how. Mum and Terry. The teacher hadn't fell for the "My mum accidentally threw the paperwork away, Sir" excuse. Wasn't even an excuse, it was the truth, but the snobby teachers always did hate me. And a decade on, they still did. _Mr Blake_ did.

I'd called Cheryl a while ago, and she still hadn't turned up. Doug had stormed off in a huff, driving the van back to the deli leaving me here all by myself. I didn't fancy a walk back in the sodding rain. I already felt like shit with a bleeding nose, let alone catching pneumonia to add to my misery. So I decided to wait. Cheryl has a car, she can pick me up and drop me home where I'll happily be _by myself _surrounded by lager and chocolate_._

What I didn't expect when the door creaked open was the person standing there. It wasn't Cheryl. They didn't have massive blonde curls. You couldn't hear the slam of their heels on the floor from miles away. But they was indeed Irish.

"Steven." Thats all he had to say to me. _Steven_, in his stupid patronising tone. There was no apology, no remorse for fucking off for a week and leaving me at the flat all alone. No kids screaming waking me up at 7 in the morning. It was all his fault Amy took them away, but no Brendan obviously didn't give a shit. I'd lost my kids because of him. I'd risked never seeing them again for somebody who was yet again, dabbling in drug-dealing. Perfect.

"Oh hi Cheryl. Your voice seems to have changed. Sounds like you're more Dublin sounding than Belfast now. Decided you needed a change did ya?" I didn't even bother looking up at him. Sarcasm was the only tone I knew right now, the only way I could stop myself was crying or lashing out.

"I know you're annoyed with me Steven..."

I interrupted. "Annoyed? Believe me Brendan I'm far from bloody annoyed. So fuck off, leave me alone and get Cheryl to pick me up."

"She's busy."

"You own the club Brendan. You decide what she has to do. Swap it round, you go and do what she's so busy doing and get her to pick me up."

"Steven you're acting like a child. Come on."

Brendan grabbed my arm, I shrugged him off. He isn't allowed to touch me. He's practically ruined all I live for. "I said get Cheryl."

"You don't have to talk to me. Let me just take you back home."

I looked at him then. It's only a ten minute journey. All I have to do is sit there and look out the window at the things we pass, hum along to the radio. Silence. Easy. "Fine. Fine. Whatever"

I walked quickly to the car. I didn't even want to look at his stupid face.

* * *

There were road-works all round the local area, so this journey that I promised myself would only take ten minutes has so far taken twenty and we ain't anywhere near the village yet. Brendan had tried to talk to me numerous times, telling me he was sorry yet still insisting he didn't know where the drugs had came from.

"Steven, talk to me please. I'm sorry for running off and leaving you, I'm sorry for the kids and stuff. Look at me please."

"But your not sorry for drug-dealing?"

Brendan pulled over, so yep this journey will now take even longer. He'd taken a diversion. I don't know if that was to cut off all the traffic or if he took the back-street way to confuse me as to where we were so I couldn't run off.

"Steven look at me. Please just look at me."

I lifted my head, glancing into his eyes. "So?"

"Read my lips Steven. I do..not..know...who put them drugs in the club okay? I don't do that anymore. I've got too much to lose. I'll lose you, if I haven't already. I don't want that alright? I'm going to find out who planted the drugs and prove it to you. I missed you you know.."

Looking into his eyes I suppose I did believe him in a way. I always know when Brendan was lying to me, he's got this stupid twitch that can't help but appear when he's fibbing and that wasn't there right now. But, he'd missed me. He'd told me he had missed me. I didn't blame him for going to Dublin. I suppose we both needed space, and I'd missed him too of course I did. I broke into a smile, couldn't help it forming. "Stop making me smile. I'm meant to hate you."

"You'll never hate me Steven." He winked, just to show me he was messing about. It was true though, it was impossible to hate him whatever he did. Dislike him maybe, but never hate him.

We were silent for a little while, Brendan was driving again whistling whatever the fuck this song was. Our song tastes were so different, I didn't even know half of his favourite artists. Then Brendan lent over, switching the radio off.

"Steven..."

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry for everything."

"I know. Don't talk about it anymore please."

"Okay. So erm. Am I going to have to punish you tonight then? What did you do?"

"I errr... I hit John Paul McQueen."

Brendan burst out laughing. Well that was weird. I would have thought he'd give me some sort of lecture about how violence doesn't solve anything. How maybe I should have remembered both our pasts and the techniques I'd learnt in anger management. What I didn't expect was my boyfriend near on crying, unable to control his laughter.

"What's so funny?"

"You punched that McQueen?"

"Well technically I hit him on the head with a bin-lid."

"What? Oh my God Steven. What the actual fuck?!" Brendan was laughing even harder now. I suppose it was a bit of a random object to hit somebody with. There were tins, kitchen equipment, everything around me seen as I was supposed to be there for a careers advice day. I joined in with Brendan. The prick did deserve it though.

"Wow. Okay then... What did he do Steven? Please don't make me laugh anymore I'm gonna wet meself in a minute."

"Talking shit about you."

"You what?"

"He was just being a bastard." I thought I'd better not tell Brendan the part where he told me he'd take my friend away from me. Brendan can get a bit defensive, he'd think I wanted Doug back or something. In hindsight, I didn't want to be stuck at the deli all day by myself while Doug's off galavanting with some McQueen twat. I continued. "He kept saying how you've obviously fucked off to Ireland to pick somebody else up, like him. How you left me just like the kids did and didn't give a shit about me."

"That's not true Steven, and I didn't. I just went and saw the boys, caught up with a few mates."

"I know. I know it's all lies. That's why I grabbed the lid."

"Stop now. You're going to kill us, I'll crash this car if I laugh again."

* * *

We'd finally made it home. Our home, the home I hoped we'd be together in forever, united as one. I put the key in the door while Brendan locked the car up. I didn't need to turn any lights on, it was bright enough already. I walked into the living room, noticing something on the table. Brendan walked up behind me. "They're for you."

"What is it?"

"Well. Technically I didn't get ye anything for Valentine's so..."

"Oh."

I strolled over to the table, laughing when I saw what he'd brought me. "Brendan what the fuck is this?"

"A leprachaun bear thing. I don't know. Made me think of you."

"I remind you of a man with a beard? Think you'll find that's you. This one has a moustache aswell. So yep it's you."

"I know. It's supposed to be me. You can keep it in your bed when ever I'm not here."

"You're so weird Brendan. Any normal person would get me chocolates, drink, tickets to a concert. Not a fucking leprachaun. I love it though..."

"Liar. Open the card."

I picked up the card, reading the words on the front. "Steven -kiss-" Ripping open the red envelope, I skim-read the wording.

_To Steven._

_I know I don't deserve you, and I know we get on eachother's nerves most of the time but I'm sorry about everything I've done to you in the past. I love you so much, I never want to lose you. I'm going to change for the better. I promise. For us..._

_So happy first Valentine's Day Steven, and here's to many more!_

_I hope you like your presents. A lot of thought went into them._

_I love you._

_Brendan x_

"Is it okay?"

"You're so soppy you know and of course it's okay. You wrote it, it's perfect. I never thought I'd ever get a Valentines card from you back in the day."

"Hmm. And the actual card you like that?"

I hadn't actually even looked at the front of the card, I just wanted to know what he'd wrote inside. Brendan was a man of very few words, so even that little message inside the card was amazing. I folded the card back over to get a look at the front.

"To my boyfriend on Valentine's Day...You actually went into a shop and bought this?"

"Yep. Actually went to the till myself and bought it. With my own money..."

"Well I appreciate you doing that..."

"There's one more thing."

"Oh right?"

Brendan went into his jacket pocket, bringing out a slip of paper and handing it to me. "What's this?"

"Look and you'll see."

I unfolded the paper, taking a better look. "Is this the...?"

"Eiffel Tower yep."

"We're going to Paris?"

"Yep."

I grabbed the back of his neck, clashing our lips together, muttering I love you when I could catch a breathe. He pushed us towards the bedroom. We never got a proper Valentine's Day, so here we were nearly two weeks on making the most of the day of love.

_God I love him._

* * *

**_Review please :) xx_**


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